F4F | Beware of Hillsong Scammer and Con Artist Frank Damazio

Welcome to another installment of Fighting for the

Faith. If you've ever been told that God just wants to take your life and take it to a whole another level or the next level or something like that, go ahead and hit the subscribe button.

You've been deceived. So we're gonna be heading over to Hillsong in Sydney, Australia this past weekend.

A gentleman by the name of Frank DiMazio had the stage, and he literally was twisting

God's Word so bad, like from the word go, that it was obvious that some of the things he was saying he was lying on purpose.

A little bit of a note here is that the things he was saying about the Greek text in Revelation chapter 4 are totally false.

How do I know this? I have a degree in biblical languages and I've been reading Greek and modern

Hebrew for more than two decades. So with that, let's get into this.

Let's pull the screen up. That's Hillsong Church. More vision, more vision is their theme right there.

Take your life to the next level is the name of the message. Frank DiMazio is our speaker. Let's listen into this egregious example of blaspheming

God by saying things about God that he didn't say, and twisting his words.

Here we go. We only have so much time, so I won't mess around too much. We're gonna get to it. I'm going to speak on a subject that everybody in the room and online, wherever you are watching, you will experience this word.

You'll apply it to yourself. I'm gonna experience this word. I can hardly wait to have this experience.

Specialty group, this is not a certain kind of person. It's every person in the room. If you're on your way to find

Christ, this is a word for you. If you're on your way to deepen it, it's a word for you. If you are in some hard times, it's a word for you.

If you are a new business person, old business person, middle -aged, young, old, doesn't matter.

Yeah, we got it. You think this is a word for everybody. By the way, God's Word, rightly preached, is for everybody of every age.

Everybody uses this phrase, and I'm gonna use it in a biblical fashion, and we're actually gonna exegete.

That is, we're gonna go into some scriptures, and... Yeah, he says he's gonna exegete, but he ain't gonna exegete.

He's gonna mangle -eat. I think that's what you... how you say it when they mangle... yeah, it's mangle -eat when you mangle the word.

I'm gonna go in and do some study this morning. I'm gonna talk with you about taking your life to the next level, and how do you do that?

How do you take your life... How do I do it? How can I take my life to the next level? I've always wondered how to do that.

To the next level. Everybody wants to. There's no... there's no doubt that in this room nobody is gonna sit there and say, nope,

I don't want to take my life to the next level. Pastor Frank, forget that. I am gonna stay right where I'm at the rest of my life, whether you're 15 or 50 or 100.

That's not true. It crosses your mind, and it comes into you once in a while that you might want to improve your life, or you might want to go to a higher level, or you might want to...

See, everybody, at least at some time, might want to improve their life. So see, this is totally relevant.

Shoot a little higher. You might want to break out of some things that are in your life right now so that you can do this thing that we're talking about, taking your life to the next level.

Here's my definition, pure and simple. Taking your life to the next level requires three little things, and we're only gonna deal actually with one of them.

Just three little things, tiny little things. But it requires three little things. A breaking out, a letting go, and a stepping up.

Break out. All right, and then a letting go. Let it go, and then stepping up.

Okay, got it. Do you have a biblical text that says this, that these are the three steps for how to take my life to the next level?

You're in the room, and you're thinking about going to the next level in your marriage, your finance, your ministry, your business, your college, your own personal spirituality, whatever it might be.

Yeah, I want to go to the next level in my heresy hunting. Yes, I do. I really do. And you would probably have to get to the place where you would break out.

So first, in order to become an even higher level heresy hunter, step one, don't hit my microphone, break out.

Got it. Where do I do this breaking out thing? You have to let go.

Yeah. And what do I need to let go of, exactly? You have to step up. Okay, yeah.

And so what I'm talking to you about is not so much in the arena of definitions of vision and dream, although it's embedded in this kind of a teaching.

Right, it's embedded in there somewhere, right, yeah. Talk with you about the action of taking dream to reality and the action of making vision more than a fantasy.

Right, so how do I do that, man? The action, it's the strategy, it's the stepping, it's the letting go.

Right. There's many people in the world that have had great visions for themselves, but not everybody fulfills great vision for themselves.

No, most don't, probably not. I just would point you to like New Year's resolutions and things like that.

They won't break out, they won't let go, and they won't step up. So notice, no biblical text so far, but he's got the three steps, break out, let go, step up, and now he's repeating them.

So, you know, everybody there in Hillsong thinks, oh yeah, this guy's a pastor. This has got to be what

God's Word says, and he's even repeating himself and like drilling it into their heads. But no biblical text actually says that this is how you go to the next level.

Your decision this morning, nobody can do it for you. I can't break out, I can't step up, I can't let go for you.

It's only for you to do that, and you have to decide how far you will go with those three things right there.

Right, how far do you want to go with your breaking out? If you only want to break out like a short distance, then you only have to let go of a little bit.

I'm assuming that's how that works. How deep, how wide you're gonna go with what it means to take your life to the next level.

In the next level, there's four things that everybody in the room will experience. New season, new level, new miracle, new door is the next door, okay?

Right, where are these four things, once I get to the next level, where are those four things laid out in that manner that I can see that?

Everybody will have a next season. If you go to the next level, you're gonna enter into an ecclesiastic season.

There's a time and a season for everything. I'm gonna enter into an ecclesiastic season. Is that like winter or more like summer?

I'm not familiar with these ecclesiastic seasons. Well, the next level has to have next miracles, and next miracles have to have next doors, and so when you have seasons, levels...

Right, next seasons, next levels, next miracles, next doors, yeah. He's baffling them with bovine scatology is the best way

I could put this. Some doors, you begin to understand that's what makes up this next level.

If you're gonna go to the next level, you have to change because the the person you are is not the person that you will be in the next level, and so you...

I gotta change who I am, yeah, right. What about being true to myself and being authentic and stuff?

If I change, then have I become inauthentic? I'm a little worried about that, you know?

You have to have a different you for the next level. The level you have now and the you you have now is not the same you you will need in the next season, next level, and the new door you...

Notice how utterly vague this is. Yeah, these are like smokescreen words.

It's hard to nail down anything specific here. True, so you have to be committed to kind of changing, and being a new you, and going through that door, going into the season, and all that that means, all right?

So we're gonna deal with two scriptures now, Revelation chapter 4 verse 1. All right, so Revelation chapter 4 verse 1.

Let's take a look at it before he gets to it. Revelation chapter 4 verse 1.

So let's apply our three rules for sound biblical exegesis, which are context, context, and context.

And you're gonna note that you're gonna need a little bit of Greek, I'll help you with that. In the opening part of the book of Revelation, we note that Christ has dictated certain letters to be delivered to particular churches through the

Apostle John, you know. So chapter 3 begins with, "...to the angel of the church in Sardis, write the words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars."

And you're gonna note there are red letters in here, which means this is Jesus speaking.

Yeah, the book of Revelation has red letters as well as the Gospels. You'll also find some red letters, by the way, in the book of Acts.

And so, "...the angel of the church of Philadelphia, write to the angel of the church at Laodicea, write..."

And in fact, let's take a look at that letter to the church in Laodicea, because I think it's quite, shall we say, salient regarding what we're looking at here.

So, "...to the angel of the church at Laodicea, write the words of the Amen, the faithful, the true witness, the beginning of God's creation.

I know your works. You are neither cold nor hot. Oh, would that you would either be cold or hot.

So because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I'm gonna spit you out of my mouth. For you say,

I'm rich, I have prospered, I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.

I counsel you, buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments that you may clothe yourself, and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.

Those whom I love I reprove and I discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock.

If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him and eat with him, and he with me. To the one who conquers,

I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my father on his throne.

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. All right, so the letters there end.

Chapter 4 then begins with these words. Look, after this I looked, and behold, a door standing in heaven, and the first voice which

I had heard speaking to me, like a trumpet said, come up here, I will show you what must take place after this.

At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne, and he who had sat there had the appearance of Jasper and Carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.

So you're gonna note that now there's a change of location. In the beginning portion of the book of Revelation, John was in exile on Patmos, and so he's on planet

Earth, and Jesus appears to him, he's got the sword coming out of his mouth, and all of that.

So now, change of venue. He is no longer on Earth, Christ says, come up here, and he is now up in the third heaven.

That's what's going on here. Now as I was reading this, did you see anything in here about taking your life to the next level?

If you say, yeah, I didn't see anything about taking my life to the next level. Yeah, well then you were right, because there's nothing in here.

Revelation 4 has nothing to do with taking your life to another level. Let's head back and see what

Frank has to say here. What I'd like to do is have you listen real careful, and just take notes if you take notes, or just absorb what

I'm going to say, but Revelation chapter 4 verse 1, I understand it's written to the seven churches, and on the Isle of Patmos, and the

Apostle John, and he's doing all these writings, and there's symbols and types and prophecy, and I'm not...

Well, actually he's done with the letters there, yeah, and yeah, so this is now the segue to the heavenly visions portion of the book of Revelation.

...with any of that. I'm just dealing with the idea, the principle behind this scripture, and I want you to say in your mind right now, this scripture is for me.

This is... Well, of course it's for you. The question is, in what way is it for you?

I mean, there's even a blessing promised to those who would read the book of Revelation.

My scripture, it's a personal application scripture. I'm going to take Revelation 4 and verse 1, and I'm going to go through some of the words in a moment after this.

How does one make a personal application of chapter 4 verse 1, where John is told to come up to heaven?

How do I personally apply that? Hmm. This guy's a con artist. ...looked,

and I saw a door, and it opened into heaven, then the voice spoke to me, and sounded like a trumpet, come up, and I will show you.

I want you to notice in this translation, the CEV, where it says, and I will show you the next, and we're talking about taking your life to the next level, but I want you to...

And I will show you what will happen next. See, he just did a word search, found in the

CEV translation, the word next, and see that, voila! Now this is about how you can go to the next level.

Yeah, let's go back and take a look at this. So, the text itself, after this,

I looked, and behold, a door standing in heaven, and the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, come up here, and I will show you what must take place.

And here's literally the Greek, meta -tauta, meta -tauta, and that literally means...

and since tauta, by the way, is in the accusative, when meta appears, that's a preposition, tauta, when it's followed by an accusative, that means it is to be understood as meaning after.

So, I will show you what must become, or what hap... what must happen after this.

After this. You see, the after this is really kind of talking about the end of the world and stuff, but I'm just saying.

But, so he found in the CEV the world... the word next, and so this is about going to the next level.

Mm -hmm. ...count a couple words, and I want you to listen to me as I just kind of Greek them out, without boring you, but I think the definition and the idea behind the word sets you up for going to the next level.

Right. And so, where it says after this, so you're... if you're taking notes, you would maybe just have like one through seven these phrases, or six or five, whatever, how many

I do, but the after this phrase is the Greek word that means to take a pause, to pause, to push the pause button.

It means to stop and to expect something new to happen. Yeah, no, let's go take a look.

So, remember down here at the end of verse one, I'll show you what will take place after this.

Well, it's funny, verse one of chapter four begins with the exact same words.

Metatauta. After this. There's nothing there about taking a pause.

This... what he just said is a straight -up lie, and if you know

Greek, you can check... you can fact -check this guy, and I know Greek. This guy is pulling a con.

He's lying, and he's so far off in what he's saying, it can't be an accident. He's straight -up making up things here.

And so the words that are used here with John, it's exactly what's gonna happen, because he's gonna have a succession of visions, and the heavens are gonna open up, and he's gonna begin writing revelatory things to the

Church that we still use today. But I'm talking to you about your life, and I'm saying to you, for us to get to the next level,

I think Revelation chapter 4 and verse 1 is a scripture for you and I, where it says after... No, it's not, because this text has nothing to do with going to the next level.

Let me back this up just a smidge. I think Revelation chapter 4 and verse 1 is a scripture for you and I, where it says after this, that is,

I pause and I expect something new to happen. Again, I mean, this guy is a con artist.

He's straight -up lying. Metatauta doesn't mean anything like that, and nor can

I apply this to my life, because in this little portion of the book of Revelation, this is a smidge of like narrative, historical narrative, of the account that happened as he was receiving the

Revelation. In that, I'm going to look. It says, and he looked, and again, the

Greek usage here is that he turned a new direction. No.

So, the Greek here is he turned a new direction. So, here it is in the

Greek. Metatautaiden. Yeah, yeah, it's, I, after this,

I looked, I saw. There's nothing there in the

Greek that says anything about turning at all. After this, I looked, and behold, a door standing in the heaven, and the voice, the first voice, you know,

I heard it, which I had heard, was like a trumpet, was speaking, you know, to me.

Uh -huh. No, he's totally making this up. What he just said is not in the

Greek at all. He's putting things there that are not there, and since Hillsong, let's just say it, doesn't have a high value on biblical scholarship, nobody there is equipped to defend themselves against these lies, but he's straight up pulling a con.

And that he began to attach his focus on what he wasn't looking at before.

So, it's a change of focus, a change of direction, and this is what's going to happen with John, because he won't be able to see the if he doesn't look at the door that's going to open.

Sometimes God wants to open doors, but we're looking the wrong direction. We're not... Yeah, see, now notice what he did here.

He took a descriptive text, and has turned it into a prescription, and lied about what's in the

Greek. This guy is slick. This is straight -up false doctrine, twisting of Scripture, and there is no application for you to apply to yourself here.

None whatsoever. This is not... Revelation 4 1 doesn't reveal the secret steps that you need to apply in order to take yourself to the next level.

You know, break out, let go, step up. Yeah, no, it's not in there at all.

Not pausing long enough. We're not listening for that next step. We're not actually looking for the new.

We're going through the routine, and you have to let go of the routine in order to get to the new, and you have to pause. That's a spirit of prayer.

That's a spirit of reflection. That's a spirit of expectation. It's a pause. It's a waiting.

It's a looking, and here with John, he's looking for the opening of the door, and the opening of the door is actually in the

Greek, which is a fantastic image. It's a vault. It's like a huge vault that's going to open, and the vault takes you into another house.

Yeah, let's take a look at that. So, after this,

I looked, and behold, a door. Thura. So, there's your word, Thura. Let's take a look at BDAG, which is the greatest

New Testament, you know, Greek lexicon there is, and let's see what it is.

Thura. Are you ready? It's a door. Yeah. Of habitable quarters.

Open the door. Yeah. Place near the door. You know what a door is? It's a door. It's not a vault.

It's a door. Yeah. So, again, he's straight up lying.

This guy doesn't know Greek. He's making things up. He's taking a descriptive text and turning it into a prescriptive text, a scratching itching ears, and it's all about you and going to another level.

This is what it means to twist God's Word and to make merchandise of people and teach for shameful gain things that ought not to be taught.

Now, here's the thing. Now, I understand he's the guest preacher there at Hillsong, but Hillsong's still responsible.

They should never have allowed a charlatan like this to teach their people anything.

And, you know, it's embarrassingly bad just how inaccurate and lying he is.

In fact, like I said, you can't be this far off and it not be a lie, because this isn't just a mistake.

This is like innovation. This is a purposeful innovation in adding things to the text that are not there.

So Hillsong, shame on you. However, I would note that that's par for the course there at Hillsong.

Very sad indeed. If you found this helpful, please share this with other people so they can be warned about Frank's Bible twisting and not fall for this kind of nonsense.

And, of course, if you'd like to support us, all the information on how to support us is below. Don't forget to subscribe and to like this button, and until next time, may

God richly bless you in the grace and mercy won by Jesus Christ and his vicarious death on the cross for all of your sins.